The present disclosure relates generally to integrated circuits, such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). More particularly, the present disclosure relates to an application ecosystem and framework for integrated circuits (e.g., FPGAs).
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Integrated circuits (ICs) take a variety of forms. For instance, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are integrated circuits that are intended as relatively general-purpose devices. FPGAs may include logic that may be programmed (e.g., configured) after manufacturing to provide any desired functionality that the FPGA is designed to support. Thus, FPGAs contain programmable logic, or logic blocks, that may be configured to perform a variety of functions on the FPGAs, according to a designer's design. Additionally, FPGAs may include input/output (I/O) logic, as well as high-speed communication circuitry. For instance, the high-speed communication circuitry may support various communication protocols and may include high-speed transceiver channels through which the FPGA may transmit serial data to and/or receive serial data from circuitry that is external to the FPGA.
In ICs such as FPGAs, there has been little ability for designers/entities to share their functionalities (e.g., as shareware and/or commercial application) with consumers. Unfortunately, as IC programmable logic designs become more complex and/or sophisticated, this silo approach may inhibit growth of the IC market, by limiting utility of the IC and/or limiting income potential for these IC devices. Further, prior attempts to share programmable logic designs have relied upon access to complex design tools and significant technical expertise (e.g., using knowledge of hardware description language, timing constraints, etc.). Accordingly, the process for using such designs is technically challenging, error-prone, and time-consuming.